


Please...

by alchemistsarego



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Blood Loss, Blood and Injury, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Gen, Hurt, Injured Pidge, Whump, hurt pidge, injured
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-28
Updated: 2018-07-16
Packaged: 2019-04-14 02:36:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,908
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14126256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alchemistsarego/pseuds/alchemistsarego
Summary: Pidge is suddenly attacked on a mission leaving her critically injured. She's growing weaker by the moment while Hunk, Lance and Keith are struggling to reach her. Shiro is nowhere to be found and Pidge's body is ready to give up even if she isn't.





	1. Paladins and Pain

**Author's Note:**

> A/N Hey guys, this is my first Voltron fic but I wanted to write it since I've had writers block for a long time. Pidge is my favourite character but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy making her suffer!! If you like this please leave a review, I could really do with the confidence booster. If you don't like this, please leave a review, I could really do with some writing advice. Now without further ado, on with the suffering.

“Okay, I’m in.” Pidge said, standing up. “Now all we have to do is-“

Her breath caught, eyes widening.

“Shiro?” Her voice cracked. “Shiro, what did you do?”

Voltron’s leader loomed over her, his glowing purple arm still imbedded in her abdomen. His dark eyes seemed darker than usual, his expression neutral. Human hand holding Pidge’s shoulder, he ripped out his prosthetic hand to a scream.

Pidge fell to the ground, arms clutching her stomach as she continued to scream. She shivered strongly, feeling like she was going to throw up and pass out at the same time. 

Shiro paid no heed to her pain and started walking away, his purple arm now covered in red.

“Shiro!” Pidge begged, reaching out for him, not understanding that he had been the one to hurt her. “Shiro! Please! Shiro!”

Again he ignored her, leaving her all alone in the empty hallway. 

Blinking back tears and screams Pidge reached for her helmet. She had placed it on the ground when she was hacking into the Galra ships computers before… Before… Before Shiro had suddenly changed and attacked her. Shiro had attacked her! 

Pidge pulled on the helmet and activated the communicator but found that she couldn’t say anything, just listening to the sounds of the battle outside.

“Hey Pidge,” Lance answered casually. “You finished in there yet? Keith is being super annoying.”

“I’m not annoying!” Keith yelled back. “You’re the annoying one!”

“You’re the one who broke his lion!” Lance retorted. “I still don’t know why you have to be in Blue!”

“I did not break Red, you did you idiot! Watch out to the left!”

“I know, I know!”

Pidge ignored their argument and instead focused on her breathing, realising it had become hard. She couldn’t feel anything except for the rising lava in her abdomen which was worse than anything she had felt before. Her vision faded in and out quickly and every little movement made her want to scream.

“Pidge?” Hunk’s voice filled her head causing her to feel even worse. “You there?”

“Help…” Her voice trembled, as did her hand above her stomach. “Please… Help…”

Lance and Keith’s bickering immediately stopped. A distant explosion echoed on the radio.

“What happened?” Keith asked quickly, the three boys all hearing the pain in her voice.

“I don’t- I don’t- Shiro, he-“ Her breathing was so loud and so quick they could all hear it.

“It’s okay Pidge,” Hunk said soothingly even as he began to panic himself. “Just take deep breathes, are you hurt?”

Pidge forced herself to look down. She hyperventilated even more once she saw that she was surrounded by blood, her armour having been pierced. Her only response was a shaky moan. 

“We’re coming Pidge.” Lance promised, pulling at the controls in his lion and flying faster than he ever had before. “Is Shiro with you?” 

“No…” She whined. “He… He stabbed me…”

Pidge gagged and ripped off her helmet just in time to throw up. Every retch pulled at her injury and she would have screamed if she wasn’t expelling all of her stomachs contents. Her whole body shivered, the ground dancing in front of her. 

Blood loss, she realised. She was losing too much blood, she was going to die. She didn’t want to die. She still had to find Matt, Matt was waiting for her. 

“Pidge? Pidge are you there? Pidge, please respond!” Hunk’s voice was barely audible from the helmet.

She reached over, tears streaming down her face, flicking a switch to broadcast what would normally only be heard if she were wearing the helmet.

“Faster Lance!” Keith growled. “Pidge! We’re almost there!”

“I can’t, I can’t breathe… Please, I can’t breathe…”

“You’re going to be okay.” Hunk said. “Just focus on my voice. Take a deep breath, in through the nose and out through the mouth.”

“I can’t.” She whined.

“You’re okay.” Hunk’s voice was steady, using the same tone he used whenever he found Lance having a panic attack. “Pidge, you’re okay. Just take a deep breath.”

There was nothing they could do for her wounds until they found her but at least Hunk could try to calm her down. But Pidge was going into shock which would only make things worse, he had to find a way to focus her while still fighting against Galra fighter planes. 

“How did you give the Green Lion invisibility?” Hunk asked.

“What?” Pidge blinked, wondering if she had finally lost it.

“How did you give the Green Lion invisibility? I was wondering what updates I could give my lion and invisibility seemed like a good upgrade.”

“You can’t have invisibility.” Pidge said weakly. “That’s my thing.”

The smell of her puke made her feel worse and she carefully made her way over to the wall, leaning against it and hissing loudly. 

“You should put a kitchen in Yellow…” Pidge said, leaning her head back and wincing. “In case you get hungry.”

“Oh, that’s a good idea!” Hunk’s voice didn’t betray his growing concern, still sounding like nothing was wrong. “I could get one of the Space Goo pumps so I always have food available.”

Pidge hummed. Her breathing had slowed considerably, a weak hand pressed against her abdomen. The pain had lessened somewhat and she was left feeling empty.

“I could also add a bed, you know for when I get tired.”

“Uh-huh…” Pidge drawled. 

“What do you want to add to Green?” Hunk asked, knowing she would focus more on direct questions. 

“A scanner…” Pidge said quietly. “To find Matt…”

“We would put a scanner like that on all the lions. Maybe we can program something to detect the human genome, and since there aren’t many humans in space we would know that any signal that isn’t us is instead Matt. Do you know how to do that?”

“Hunk…” Pidge mumbled, her trembles slowing. “I don’t want to die.”

“You’re not going to die.” Hunk said strongly. “Lance, Keith, how much longer?”

“There’s too many Galra!” Lance growled back. “We can’t get onto the ship!”

“Pidge!” Keith said, feeling useless. “Hang in there!”

Pidge hummed, blinking slowly. Her hands tingled, almost like she had fallen asleep on them. She couldn’t feel much else, nor could she see anything. She distantly knew that it wouldn’t be much longer.

“Guys…” She mumbled. “I’m sorry…”

“Pidge, don’t say that!” Lance admonished. “We are almost there!”

She weakly smiled, feeling a little warmer knowing that her team was doing everything they could for her. But even that warmth was leaving her as even more blood drained from her body.

“I’m glad…” She continued. “That I could be a Paladin…”

She reached for her bayard, which had fallen from her grasp when she had been stabbed. Her wound pulled with the movement and made the pain come rushing back. She screamed as her vision exploded, her body folding into itself. 

“Pidge!” All three paladins cried out. 

She didn’t respond, heaving for every breath. Heart racing, she felt nauseas again but suddenly realised that her awareness had come back. She fought against the black in the corner of her eyes, knowing that she needed to stay awake. 

“I’m… Okay…” She gasped, pushing back the urge to throw up again. “It just… Kind of… Stings…”

“Stings?” Keith laughed roughly. “Being stabbed hurts a hell lot more than that.”

“You’ve… Been… Stabbed… Before…?” Pidge blinked back the tears.

“I didn’t exactly have the best child hood,” Keith replied. “I guess I pissed off the wrong people. Twice, in fact.”

“Typical Keith.” Lance said, relaxing a little when he heard Pidge laugh. “You always have to piss off the wrong people.”

“Then I guess…” Pidge was growing weak again. “You would also know how cold it gets…”

“Are you cold?” Hunk asked worridly.

“Uh-huh… Really cold…” She tilted her head. “Colder than Hoth…”

“Pidge stay awake,” Lance, no, Keith? No it was Lance.

Pidge blinked away the fog only for it to return immediately. Any awareness she had gained was slipping away and she could not understand anything her friends were saying. Wait, who was talking? No one was around her, why were there voices? She raised a shaking hand to her face. Why was her hand red? She didn't understand. Why was she in pain?

Hours went by, no, minutes, no, seconds? Her hand dropped to her side. She coughed weakly and something warm dripped down her chin. 

Foot steps. Gun shots. More foot steps. More gun shots.

Pidge blinked, rising her head a little as she saw two figures, one red and one blue.

“We found her!” The red one reported.

Pidge blinked again, the blurs refining into her friends. Keith crouched next to her while Lance took up a defensive position. 

“Coran,” Keith said loudly, the stress obvious in his voice. “I don’t know what to do, there’s too much blood.”

Coran? When had they contacted Coran? 

Pidge watched in a daze as Keith listened to Coran’s instructions. She didn’t understand anything Coran was saying. What did he mean put pressure? Why was Keith making her lie down? Her surroundings started to fade and she allowed her eyes to close. 

A blood curdling scream woke her up. 

Keith’s hands pressed harder into her wound and her scream grew louder. Pidge struggled against him, weak arms flailing. 

“I’m sorry,” Keith grit his teeth, keeping his hands on her stomach. “I know it hurts but I have to stop the bleeding.”

She only screamed more.

“Coran!” Keith growled. “It’s not working!”

“Just keep putting pressure,” The old altean instructed calmly. “If you move Number 5 now she will only bleed out. Hunk is looking for Galran Medical Supplies as we speak.”

Pidge’s screams finally cut off but she still tried to push Keith away, tears and sweat streaming down her face. 

Lance watched uselessly, biting his lip so hard he could taste blood. His grip tightened on his gun, willing to protect his injured friend at all costs.

“Keith, please, it hurts!” Pidge whimpered. “Please! Stop!”

Keith found that he was unable to look at her pale face and terrified eyes, focusing instead on the red that seemed to cover her whole body. 

Pidge coughed strongly, bringing up even more blood. 

Lance shot down two Galra Sentries before they had even seen the Paladins. He struggled to ignore Pidge’s obvious pain, hating how she gasped for every breath.

“Keith, please…”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” Keith blinked back tears, knowing he was the cause of her pain.

“Please, stop…”

“I can’t just let you die!” Keith yelled, pressing harder against her wound. 

She threw her head back, her screams echoing throughout the hallways. But then the screaming cut off and she went limp.

“Pidge,” Keith’s voice shook. “Pidge come on, don’t you dare die on me!”

She didn’t respond, barely breathing. 

“Hunk!” Lance called over the radio. “Hurry up!”

“I’m almost there!” Hunk called back, judging from his own breathing he was running. 

Within moments Hunk appeared, his arms full of what could only be assumed to be medical supplies. He dropped down next to Keith, letting go of the supplies. He bit back a gear as he struggled to sort whatever he had stolen.

“Coran!” Hunk said. “I don’t know how to use any of this!”

Coran had been the one to tell Hunk what to grab, he was the one that knew how to treat such serious wounds, the Paladins were useless without him being actively there.

“Is she still breathing?” The Altean’s voice echoed on the radio.

“Yes, but barely.”

“Okay, you need to stabilise her airway first. Grab the small device with the needle. Insert the needle into the blue vial.” Coran instructed calmly. “Twist the knob twice, that should be enough of a dosage.”

“Wait, wait! How would drugs help with her breathing?”

“The Galra developed many pharmaceuticals before the war, they were quite advanced in the medical field. The drug in the blue vial specialises in strengthening the respiratory system. In Galra at least. It may not work in a Human.”

Hunk chewed his lip but followed Coran’s instructions anyway. Pidge could die at any moment, he would have to risk using drugs that have never been trusted on humans before.

“Now inject it into Pidge’s neck.”

Hunk pulled down the Green Paladin’s black under suit, carefully piercing her skin with the needle. Nothing happened. But then suddenly she took a deep breath, eyes still glued shut. She coughed, once, twice, but no blood was brought up this time. 

“Now press the Virakap directly onto the injury.”

“Virakap?” 

“Oh, uh, bandages? Yes. Bandages. Press the bandage directly onto the injury.”

Hunk picked up what he could only assume to be the ‘Virakap’. He exchanged a silent look with Keith. They had to time it so Pidge wouldn’t lose even more blood than she already had.

Three. Two. One.

Keith removed his hands as Hunk put the bandage onto Pidge’s abdomen. The bandage suddenly warped and stretched, sealing her wound with a purple covering. She hissed but still didn’t open her eyes.

“Done.” Hunk reported, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“Coran,” Keith grit his teeth. “Pidge isn’t breathing.”

There was silence on the radio.

“Coran!” Keith growled. “What do we do?”

“She may be reacting to the Galra drugs or to the Virakap. Or she could have just succumbed to her wound…”

“Coran! Tell me what to do!”

Galra Sentries came across them and Lance expertly shot them down, not daring look at the small body on the ground. 

“The green vial,” Coran suddenly said. “I made you bring a green vial. Use the needle and click it seven times. No five! Five times!”

“Are you sure?” Hunk’s voice shook. “You don’t sound sure. Does he sound sure to you?”

“Move quickly! You haven’t any time to lose!”

Keith took the needle from beside Hunk and inserted it in the green vial. He clicked it five times. And injected it into Pidge’s neck.

Pidge sucked in a deep breath and vaulted up, puking on both Hunk and Keith. Hunk squeaked and stumbled away, trying not to gag himself. Her eyes were wide as she threw up again, arms gripping her abdomen. 

She shook strongly, a pathetic whimper passing her lips. 

“Pidge! Are you okay?” Keith asked, fussing over her. 

She couldn’t reply, retching again. 

More Galra sentries appeared and Lance struggled to keep up.

“We need to get out of here!” He said, still shooting. “There’s too many of them!”

“Hunk!” Keith growled. “Lift her up and let’s go! Bring her to the Yellow Lion, Lance and I will worry about these guys.”

Hunk didn’t question Keith’s authority, ignoring his own nausea as he crawled back over to Pidge. He gently pulled her into his arms, apologising profusely as she cried out.

“It’s… Fine…” Pidge trembled. “Doesn’t… Hurt… At all…”

Hunk lifted her.

“Oh God oh God oh God that hurts! Hunk!”

“You’re going to be okay…” Hunk said pathetically, bringing her closer so she wouldn’t fall out of his arms with her struggling. “Just focus on me.”

“Where’s Shiro? I want Shiro…” Pidge sobbed, a hand gripping onto Hunk’s armour. “Please, I want Shiro…”

Hunk’s jaw tightened, knowing that she had earlier said Shiro had been the one to hurt her. But she was desperate, she was terrified and in pain.

“Shiro is at the Castle.” Keith supplied, thinking the same as Hunk. “You will see him soon.”

Pidge seemed to relax a little, her eyes still squeezed tightly. She buried into Hunk’s chest, her entire body shivering. 

“Coran,” Hunk said as he started walking. “Pidge is really cold.”

“That is to be expected with severe blood loss.” Coran replied. “The healing pod is already prepared, get her here as soon as possible.”

Hunk nodded as he started running, failing to ignore every gasp Pidge made. She was covered in blood and bile and she was miserable. But the sooner they got her to the castle, the quicker she would feel better. 

As Hunk ran, Lance and Keith battled the Galra Sentries, making sure none of them got even close to their injured comrade. 

Pidge was losing consciousness again by the time they reached the Yellow Lion. Her grip to Hunk weakened, her breathing slowing. Even though her wound was temporary sealed, Hunk started to worry that she was instead bleeding internally. 

“Hunk…” She drawled. “I’m so cold…”

“Hang in there!” Hunk begged, rushing towards his lion. The Yellow Lion crouched down, opening its massive mouth to allow his Pilot and the Green Paladin in. 

“Hunk…”

Pidge was practically limp as Hunk gently laid her on the floor. She looked incredibly weak, muscles occasionally cramping. 

Hunk took over the controls to his Lion, tearing away from the Galra Ship as quickly but as safely as possible. He evaded the debris from broken Galra fighters, wincing each time Pidge made a sound.

Running on autopilot, he didn’t even realise he had landed in the Castle. Hunk blinked, hands glued to his controls. Without his command, the Yellow Lion opened its mouth and allowed Coran to enter with a levitating gurney. 

“Number 5, can you hear me?” Coran asked loudly, putting on his usual bubbly attitude.

“Hmm?” Her eyes fluttered open. “Coran? Coran it hurts…”

“That’s okay! We’ll have you fixed up in just a tick. Now, how many fingers am I holding up?”

Pidge’s head moved side to side and her whole body seemed to periodically tense.

“Coran…” She mumbled tiredly. “I’m going to be sick…”

“Sick?” He leaned closer to her.

It was too late, Pidge’s whole body curled up and she threw up blood and bile. 

In response, the previously catatonic Hunk threw up as well, the stress finally catching up to him.

“Ah!” Coran boomed. “Sick! As in human-vomit sick. That reaction could have been caused by the medication… Perhaps it is not meant to be used on Humans after all..”

“Coran…” Pidge whispered, heaving for every breath. “Shut up…”

Although Coran was glad that Pidge was proving she was aware of her surrounds, now that he could see the blood that covered her he knew that she wouldn’t last much longer. As if to prove this point, her eyes closed.

Coran swiftly transferred Pidge to the gurney, assessing her wound as he went. Severe internal damage, most likely a collapsed lung as well if her breathing was anything to go by. Her temperature and complexion were caused by the blood loss, which would also explain her confusion over who had attacked her. The nausea and vomiting could be a reaction to the medication but it also could have been cause by the initial trauma.

But the question remained. Had it been Shiro who stabbed her? Or was that just confused babbling on her part? And if it was Shiro, then why would he attack someone that he was so close to?

As Coran watched Pidge’s breathing declined. He had to hurry. 

Allura had transported the Castle as soon as the Yellow Lion was on board, not wanting to put Pidge at even more risk should the Castle be attacked. Lance and Keith would have to catch up later, they could hold their own for now and they still had both the Blue Lion and the Green Lion. 

When Allura was sure they were safe, she rushed to the infirmary in case Coran needed help.

“Princess,” Coran greeted. “Are you alright? You look pale.”

“I am merely worried about Pidge.” Allura said. “Will she recover?”

“There is no denying that this is serious.” Coran warned, turning his focus back onto the Green Paladin. “However, I can promise that I will do everything in my power to heal her.” 

Allura nodded, coming over to assist.

Pidge whimpered loudly but didn’t stir as Coran removed her armour. He moved quickly and efficiently, trying to minimise any pain that she felt. Allura put her chest plate aside as Coran moved onto her arms and legs. All that remained was her black body suit, a large rip in the abdominal area showing exactly where she had been stabbed even if the wound itself was covered by the Virakap. 

Coran used a small knife to carefully cut around the Virakap so he could remove the black but bloody undersuit. 

Pidge’s breath hitched and she squirmed, fists tightly clenched. 

“Hurts…” She moaned. “Shiro… Please… It hurts…”

Coran didn’t say anything, pulling the under suit away. The damage was even worse than he expected. The wound was large compared to Pidge’s small body, dark bruising covering almost her entire stomach. 

She was struggling for every breath. There was no doubt now, one of her lungs must have been punctured. It was only a matter of time before her other lung also gave in. The only reason she was still alive was because of the medication that had been injected into her in the field. But that was also failing to keep the poor human alive. 

As gently as he could, Coran redressed her into the healing pod suit. He grimaced as the fabric pressed up against her wound and she screamed. 

Pidge’s heart failed just as she was sealed into the healing pod.


	2. Comforting and Confusion

Hunk had set up his computer right outside Pidge’s pod but couldn’t find himself able to do any work. 

He couldn’t look up at her either. She was still so pale, so small. 

Coran had promised that she didn’t feel any pain but the look on her face said otherwise. He suddenly missed his conversations with her, no one else quite understood the types of things they would talk about. He even missed his petty arguments over how best to use technology.

She looked so fragile. There was no fire in her eyes, no strength in her body. No. He couldn’t look at her. But he couldn’t work either. So he just sat there remembering her screams, remembering her begging him not to cause any more pain. He couldn’t do anything, he couldn’t make her feel better, he had just hurt her more. 

Where’s Shiro? Pidge had cried. I want Shiro. Please I want Shiro.

Hunk wasn’t Shiro. He didn’t always know what to say to Pidge, he didn’t know Pidge before the Galaxy Garison. Hunk wasn’t Shiro and Pidge needed Shiro. 

Hunk’s lip trembled. It had gotten hard to breathe, his mind and his heart racing at a million lightyears an hour. 

“You should eat something.”

Hunk jumped up, his computer falling to the ground. He scrubbed at his face, unable to wipe away the tears.

“You went through a lot.” Coran continued, clenched hands behind him. “It won’t help her if you become ill yourself.”

“I couldn’t help her.” Hunk finally broke down. “She needed me and I couldn’t help her.”

Coran tilted his head and approached the healing pod. He didn’t even look at Hunk when he spoke.

“That isn’t true.” Coran said. “You calmed her. Pidge was panicking and you calmed her down. And then you brought her here. That is all anyone could have asked of you.”

“What if she doesn’t wake up?”

“She may not.” Coran admitted. “There is only so much Altean technology can do. And if the worst happens, Pidge will die. Her heart has already failed many times.”

“How can you say that so calmly?” Hunk sobbed, hugging himself tightly.

“Because if you hadn’t brought her here, it would have been too late to treat her. You gave her a chance.”

Hunk considered his words and sucked in a deep breath. Freaking out wouldn’t help Pidge. The only thing that could help Pidge now was her own inner strength. Pidge was the most formidable of all of them, she could get through this.

“Thank you Coran.” Hunk wiped his tears away and stood straight. “I’m going to work out how to make the best food goo pasta I can so she can try it when she wakes up.”

“What a brilliant idea.” Coran said warmly.

As soon as Hunk was gone, Coran sighed deeply. He adjusted something on the pod, keeping a careful watch on her weak life signs. She was still fighting. She hadn’t given up yet. And he wouldn’t give up on her either. 

———————————————————————————————————————————

Lance had been the first one to arrive back at the castle. But even as exhaustion tugged at him, the need to check on Pidge had tugged harder. 

Almost all of them had been in the healing pods at one point or another so they all knew how unpleasant it felt to be in one even as Coran claimed again and again that you don’t feel anything while in a pod. The only one who had yet to be injured enough to spend time in the pod had been Pidge.

She had gotten hurt on missions before, of course, but never to this extent. She often had superficial cuts and bruises from fighting in close combat but she would always quickly recover. 

But now…

Now Pidge was severely wounded. She could still die at any moment despite the life support the Castle offered. 

Lance sat down roughly in front of the pod, looking up at her ever so small body. 

“Hey Pidge,” Lance said quietly. “You were very brave.”

As expected, Pidge didn’t respond at all. Although frozen, her body periodically shivered and her face seemed to be contorted. 

“I know that you want Shiro and not me but I guess that can’t happen. We still can’t find him, you know. Coran said that maybe the Galra took control of him and forced him to hurt you… But I know that Shiro would never hurt you. He would do anything for you, and so would the rest of us.”

Pidge had tensed up again even as her eyes remained shut. 

“Pidge,” Lance said as gently as he could. “You’re going to be okay. I know you’re hurting but you’re going to be okay. We will find Shiro and work out what happened, but for now just rest.”

Her muscles seemed to relax again and Lance grew silent, his own muscles aching. They had been fighting endlessly for weeks and it probably wouldn’t let up any time soon. They were Paladins of Voltron, the Universe still needed them. But as much pressure as that put on Lance, he was glad that he wasn’t alone in the fight. 

Pidge had been brave today, so brave. It was time for her to rest and recuperate and Lance would need to fight even harder in order to protect her. Even though he was exhausted, he twisted his body and started doing push ups. Pidge needed him. He would get stronger, he would protect her. She would never feel pain again.

Lance would never let anyone hurt Pidge again.

He didn’t notice he was being watched, an old Altean feeling older than ever before remaining at the infirmaries door.

“Alfor,” Coran whispered. “Please, look after her.”

———————————————————————————————————————————

Keith quickly found that he missed the Red Lions speed. Although the Green Lion had by some miracle allowed him to enter, it made slow progress towards the Castle. The Lion itself seemed uncomfortable, every movement junky and unfocused. Green barely allowed Keith to direct it, almost flying herself towards her injured Pilot.

“Look,” Keith said as calmly as he could. “I know I’m not your Paladin but could you please hurry up a little?”

Keith knew that Pidge had modified the Lion but he couldn’t quite work out how to use the updated systems. And more importantly, he couldn’t find the powerful thrusters that Pidge had mentioned so often. 

As he flew through vast space, Keith swore he could hear a low whimper.

“Green?” Keith asked. “Are you okay?”

The whimper became louder and the Lion seemed to slow.

Flashes invaded Keith’s mind. Pain, betrayal, screams. Pidge’s memories. He didn’t know how but the Green Lion was showing him Pidge’s memories. Keith felt his whole body shiver.

“You’re worried about Pidge.” He whispered. “She is your Paladin and you are worried about her.”

A low moan rumbled in his head and the Lion stopped completely. 

More memories flashed in Keith’s vision. Pain, betrayal, screams. But these screams weren’t Pidge’s, they were her predecessors. Trigel had screamed in the same way as Pidge did as she was betrayed and murdered by Zarkon 10 thousand years ago. 

“Pidge will survive this.” The Red Paladin promised. “I know that you don’t want to lose another Paladin but Pidge is stronger than you think she is. She will pull through this.”

The memories switched again, this time from the view of the Lion itself instead of its pilots. Countless battles in which Pidge and the Green Lion had worked together to save countless lives. The Lion knew more than anyone that Pidge was strong. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t worry for her Paladin.

“Come on,” Keith pushed on the controls so they could start moving again. “Let’s go, Pidge will want to see you when she wakes up. Let’s get back to the Castle.”

A button appeared on the controls that Keith hadn’t seen before. He tilted his head, realising it was the extra thrusters he had been looking for. He didn’t hesitate in pressing it.

I’m coming Pidge.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Shiro’s head whirled as he stumbled through Galran hallways. His vision shorted out, replaced with memories that couldn’t possibly be his own. Pidge was screaming, she was injured. She was begging him not to leave, begging for his help but he had left anyway.

A need to kill whoever had hurt Pidge burned through his entire body, his purple arm vibrating on its own accord. Shiro fell to his knees as more vicious images passed through his mind. He was towering over Pidge, Galran arm stabbing into her body. Her eyes danced not only with pain but betrayal. No, the memories were wrong… He would never, could never, do anything hurt her. 

“Pidge!” Shiro gasped over the communicator. “Pidge! Where are you?”

The radio just buzzed in response.

He started running again. Pidge was hurt, she needed help. Shiro needed to find her, needed to comfort her. He had already lost Matt, he couldn’t lose Pidge to.

“Pidge! Pidge come in! Please!”

Shiro’s shouting had attracted some Galra sentries who approached him with their guns drawn. His blood boiled. He needed to find the Green Paladin, he didn’t have time to fight the stupid Galra. 

“Get out of the way!” He screamed, slicing through the sentries easily. 

More memories attacked him, forcing him to trip and fall onto the ground. It had been him. There was no doubt. He had been the one to attack Pidge, he had been the one to betray her and hurt her. Shiro doubled over and threw up. 

As soon as he recovered, he started running again. Even if he had been the one to hurt Pidge, if no one had found her then she would still be bleeding out. He ignored the burning in his entire body, forcing his legs to move faster. 

He had found the trail of destroyed sentries first, no doubt having been killed by Lance’s bayard. 

“Pidge!” Shiro called.

It couldn’t be much further now. Human blood trailed down the hallway, past the sentries and a corner. There was so much blood, it couldn’t possibly be Pidge’s. Following his instinct, he left the trail of blood and instead turned into a hallway.

Shiro stumbled to the ground again. More blood. It was everywhere. So much blood. On the ground, on the wall, everywhere. Even the small green helmet on the ground had been covered.

“No!” Shiro screamed. 

He crawled the rest of the way and picked up the helmet with shaking hands. There was no denying it now. Pidge was hurt, she was dying if she hadn’t already. He clutched the helmet to his chest, tears running down his face. 

“Pidge, Katie, I’m so sorry…” Shiro cried. “I’m so sorry. I couldn’t protect you.”

How had things gone down hill so quickly? It had just been a routine mission to take out a Galra cruiser, why was Pidge’s helmet covered in blood?

The memories were back, this time a few minutes before he had stabbed Pidge with his Galran arm. There had been whispers, whispers that Pidge had claimed she couldn’t hear. She had said that it was probably just some technological problem with his helmet and that she would look at it when they got back to the castle. But the whispers had gotten louder.

Shiro remembered getting dizzy, putting a hand against his head.

“Shiro?” Pidge had tilted her head. “You okay?”

Shiro had waved it away, admitting that he just hadn’t been sleeping very well.

“Then maybe you should take your own advice.” She laughed, taking off her helmet and laying it down. “You’re always telling me to go to bed.”

Pidge had then summoned a computer screen, effortlessly hacking into the security system of the cruiser. 

“Hey Shiro,” Pidge had glanced up at him. 

“Yeah?”

“Do you think we’ll find Matt?”

Shiro had hated how he had hesitated. Her face had fallen a little, noticing the delay.

“Of course we will Pidge.” Shiro said all too late.

“It’s just,” Pidge sighed. “It’s just that the Galran empire is massive. They have captives all over the universe, it would be impossible to save them all.”

“Katie.” Shiro said gently, ignoring his growing headache. “We’ll find Matt. I promise you.”

Pidge nodded, sucking in a deep breath. She stood up.

“Okay, I’m in, now all we have to do is-“

Shiro’s body had moved without his command and when he blinked he was standing over Pidge, his robotic arm still stabbing into her. The look in her eye, the pain, the betrayal, that had been what sent Shiro over the edge and his vision faded completely, only to have awoken while he was stumbling down the hallways.

Shiro took Pidge’s helmet with him when he ran back to his Lion, activating the directions to the Castle immediately. 

———————————————————————————————————————————

Allura was unable to sleep. After what felt like doboshes of tossing and turning, the mice’s comforting squeaks doing nothing to relax her, she finally pulled herself out of bed. Feeling cold, she pulled on a dressing gown as she left her room, the mice climbing onto her shoulders and head. 

“I suppose you are worried about Pidge also?” Allura asked the mice.

They squeaked and buried into her. 

She made her way to the infirmary, her footsteps the only sound in the castle. Everyone must have gone to bed hours ago, Coran having lowered the lights in the hallways. She didn’t often walk the halls alone, much preferring idle talk with Coran and the Paladins. But even with the mice there, she couldn’t help but feel lonely. 

She hadn’t walked the hallways with Pidge before, the Green Paladin preferring to be holed up in her lab. But that didn’t mean that she hadn’t enjoyed any time she spent with Pidge. It was nice to have another girl to talk to, even if the other girl was a young human. They had more in common than they had originally thought and Allura knew that Pidge enjoyed their talks too, reminiscing about their fathers and complaining about the antics of lovesick men.

But now those peaceful memories were tainted by memories of pain. Allura had watched as Pidge’s body failed again and again, the healing pod barely able to revive her each time. Pidge was so weak, not even Coran was confident that the Altean technology would keep her alive. 

Allura hadn’t wanted to leave her side, whispering sweet Altean lullabies in the hope that Pidge could hear them. Coran however had insisted that the Princess got some sleep, sending her to bed once Pidge’s body hadn’t failed for over two doboshes. 

Allura had reached the infirmary now and she was surprised to find that she hadn’t been alone in wanting to stay with Pidge.

Keith’s breathing was deep and even, slouched against a lightly snoring Lance. Hunk was also sleeping, surrounded by what must be Pidge’s newest project that he had been making adjustments to. They had all changed into the casual clothes, no doubt by Coran’s request that they get out of their bloody armour. But even if they had changed their clothes, they were still covered in sweat and what must be dry blood, none of them wanting to risk the time it took to have a shower should something happen.

Coran was there also, his arms crossed behind him as he stood in front of Pidge’s healing pod. He didn’t turn before he spoke.

“You should sleep Princess.”

“I couldn’t.” Allura came over and also faced Pidge’s battered body.

Pidge was still awfully pale, the pod struggling to support her breathing and heart rate let alone start healing her wound. Pidge seemed to tense, a pained moan escaping her lips.

“I’m surprised that the others can sleep.” Allura said, calming as she listened to their collective even breathing.

“It was a tough battle.” Coran reminded. “The Paladins are exhausted.”

“And so are you.” Allura turned to him directly, noticing that he refused to look at her. “Coran, you need to rest. I can watch over Pidge.”

“I’m afraid you do not know how to operate the healing pod should her heart fail again. I will be alright.”

“Show me what to do.” She said. “I want to be able to help in any way I can.”

“But Princess,”

“Coran, please.”

“Very well.”

Coran summoned another healing pod so he could demonstrate how to correctly use it without risking hurting Pidge more. 

Pidge herself seemed to relax, her muscles loosening and her breathing becoming more steady.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Hi again! I'm not as happy with this chapter as I was with the first but I still wanted to add it. It was hard working out the order to put these in but I definitely wanted at least one part per character, with Coran being the centre of many of them. I'm really enjoying writing again even if it's not that great. I will try to add more chapters, especially when Shiro returns to the Castle and possibly even someone finding Matt while Pidge is still healing because I love to make Holt's suffer, especially if Matt believes that Shiro had purposefully hurt Pidge. Please leave a review!


	3. Men and Mittens

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Hi again! Thank you so much to all those who reviewed and left Kudos! I have never posted on Ao3 so it was amazing to get three comments with 24 hours. Even though originally this was going to be a one shot, I've really enjoyed writing it. Now, onto the suffering! (Poor poor Pidge)

Pidge was screaming. She thrashed against the healing pod, aggravating her wound and making it bleed again.

“What’s happening?” Keith demanded, arms folded tightly.

“The pod is failing.” Coran admitted, typing quickly. “I’ve never seen this before. It’s almost like all the Quintessence is draining away.”

Pidge thrashed again, throwing her head back. 

“Get her out!” Keith yelled.

“I can’t! If I take her out now she’ll die!”

“We have no choice! She’s dying now!”

The pods door disappeared and Pidge fell forward. Keith barely caught her, protecting her head from hitting the ground. She was freezing, eyes squeezed tightly, her entire body spasming. 

“Pidge,” Keith cradled her closely, brushing her hair back. “It’s okay, you’re okay.”

Pidge wouldn’t stop screaming as she thrashed against Keith.

Coran crouched next to them, an Altean machine assessing her condition. 

“Coran do something!” Keith snarled.

The Altean stood up, rushed over to a tray of medication he had prepared earlier. His hands shook as he decided what to use and how much. Pidge was a fragile human child. She couldn’t possibly handle most of the medications that had been used on ill Alteans.

He finally made a decision as Pidge gave off another scream. He rushed back and inserted a needle directly in her neck.

Pidge cried out but Keith held her strongly, keeping her from moving too much. Fresh blood seeped out of her wound, making her already pale face paler. Her struggles slowed and her cries quietened. 

Coran started to prepare another healing pod, one that still had remaining Quintessence. He moved quickly, not know how much longer Pidge had.

“Pidge,” Keith cooed softly, stroking her hair. “You’re okay. You’re going to get through this.”

Her small body thrashed again as if an electric current ran through her. Her tremors turned to trembles, her cries to whimpers.

“Shiro…” Pidge moaned pathetically.

“Shiro is coming.” Keith promised.

Keith’s blood boiled. How could Shiro have done this? Pidge had looked up to him, she still desperately wanted him, so how could Shiro have stabbed her?

Pidge whimpered, burying her head into Keith’s chest. He pulled her tighter. Shiro was going to pay for this, one way or another. 

“The pod is ready.” Coran reported. “Bring her here.”

Keith stood up as slowly as possible, hating how it made Pidge gasp. She was small but she wasn’t weightless so he had to be careful not to lose his grip. 

“No…” Pidge sobbed into his shirt. “Please, no.”

“Pidge, the pod will help.” Keith said gently.

“No…” Pidge coughed strongly, her body shivering again. 

Despite her protests, Pidge was sealed into the new healing pod and she lost consciousness.

Keith looked down on himself, his white shirt now drenched in red. His hands shook. Shiro was going to pay for this. Oh, he was going to pay, even if Keith had to kill him himself. 

“Keith,” Coran put a hand on his shoulder.

Keith shoved the Altean away, leaving the infirmary before something else could go wrong.

Coran lowered his hand and sighed deeply. He turned back to Pidge’s new pod, glad that her face had relaxed. He quickly assessed the schematics of the pod, confirming that it was running at its full potential. He went back over to the original pod.

“Impossible.” He mumbled. “The Quintessence is completely gone.”

In all his life, he had never seen a healing pod lose it’s healing ability. It was unprecedented. Usually a pod would deactivate if it deemed the patient to be dead as to not waste energy that could be used for other patients. But this pod had drained all of its energy to keep Pidge alive. There was only one explanation.

“Thank you Alfor.” Coran said, bowing his head. 

The Castle seemed to hum in response.

———————————————————————————————————————————

“It’s Shiro.” Keith’s temper rose as he watched the Black Lion approach. “Shoot him down.”

“Keith!” Lance exclaimed. “You can’t just shoot down Shiro!”

“Did you forget? Shiro is the one to have hurt Pidge!”

“I know that! Maybe he has an explanation!” The Blue Paladin didn’t seem to believe his own words, his body tense. 

Hunk put up his hand. He put it down when Lance and Keith both glared at him.

“I think I have to agree with Keith.” He said meekly. “I mean, don’t shoot him or anything, but if we let him in he could try to kill Pidge.”

Allura notably didn’t add to the argument, her eyes trained on the Lion. Maybe Shiro had betrayed them, maybe he had followed in Zarkon’s foot steps as the Black Paladin.

A video feed appeared on the screen, revealing a bloody and exhausted Shiro.

“Shiro,” Lance stepped forward. “What the hell happened?”

“I can explain!” Shiro claimed, eyes puffy from crying. “I didn’t hurt her, someone controlled me!”

“Lier!” Keith growled back. “We can’t believe him! He’ll kill us all!”

“Keith, I swear,” Shiro said desperately. “I would never hurt Pidge on purpose. Is she okay? Please, I need to know.”

Everyone’s tension grew worse and they exchanged looks. Coran was still tending to the youngest paladin and had yet to announce that she was stable.

“She’s alive,” Lance said finally. “No thanks to you.”

Even if Lance didn’t want Shiro to literally be killed, he was far from sympathetic towards their supposed leader. He was angry with Shiro, no, he was furious. Out of all of them Pidge trusted Shiro the most and he had betrayed that trust.

Shiro’s face seemed to fall. His guilt was obviously nawing at him.

“Shiro,” Hunk said lowly, his normally kind face replaced by hard eyes. “You could have killed Pidge. You need to understand why we can’t let you near her.”

Shiro clenched his jaw, closing his eyes. When he reopened them he looked like he regained his composure.

“I know.” Shiro said. “Even if someone controlled me, I still hurt Pidge. Which is why I want you to take me as a prisoner.”

“What?” Allura laughed without any humour. “You want to be a prisoner?”

“I’m dangerous. I don’t want to put anyone else at risk. If you put me in the holding facility in the Castle, I won’t be able to hurt anyone.”

“We take a vote.” Lance said decisively. “Coran, are you listening?”

“Loud and clear Number Three!” Coran’s voice boomed over the sound system, obviously trying to lighten the mood. 

“Okay,” Lance said. “Who thinks we should take Shiro as the Castles Prisoner until we can work out what happened?”

Hunk rose a shaky hand. Allura sucked in a deep breath but also raised her hand. Lance put up his hand while Keith crossed his arms even tighter. 

“Coran?” Lance asked. 

“Oh! My hand is up! Sorry!” The Altean forced a erie laugh. “I suppose you can’t see it!”

“Four to one in favour of taking Shiro prisoner.” The Blue Paladin seemed very in control of the situation even if he was internally hating being the temporary leader. “Hunk, is there any way you can deactivate Shiro’s arm?”

“Well,” Hunk started counting on his fingers. “First I would have to make sure there aren’t any bugs in the programming that would attack me should I try to deactivate it. But then I would have to find out exactly what makes his arm all purpley, you know when it vibrates or whatever? But there would also be a chance that-“

“Hunk.” Lance interrupted. “Can you do it?”

“I guess so but I’ll have to use some of Pidge’s equipment and she’ll kill me if she finds out I went into her room.”

“I’m sure she’ll understand.” Allura offered, preparing the docking procedure of the Black Lion.

Hunk nodded and left.

“I’m not sure she’ll understand how we let her would-be killer on board.” Keith said dryly, glaring daggers into the image of Shiro.

“Keith I’m sorry.” Shiro said, bowing his head a little.

“You have no right to be sorry!” Keith growled. 

Without another word, the Red Paladin stalked away, not wanting anyone to notice the tears prickling his eyes. 

———————————————————————————————————————————

Coran wasn’t all too surprised when the second healing pod failed, having been watching the schematics carefully now that he knew the pods could run out of Quintessence. He had already decided what to do, enlisting Lance’s help to transfer Pidge to yet another pod. 

Lance grunted as he caught Pidge’s limp body, glad that she seemed to be sleeping somewhat peacefully. He lowered her to the ground as Coran did the final preparations on the new pod.

“I’ve got you.” Lance whispered to her, careful of her still serious wound.

The first pod had spent all it’s Quintessence in keeping Pidge alive at all but the second healing pod had been able to start healing the actual wound, even if it had also wasted all its power in doing so. Surely this third pod would help Pidge to fully recover. 

Coran ignored the possibility that the newest pod would not be suffice. He had yet been able to find a way to recharge the machines so he made sure to take extra care in the maintenance off all the still functioning pods. If they all ran out of Quentessence… No. That couldn’t happen. 

“Hey Coran?” Lance called to him. “She’s still really cold.”

“Eh, that would be the blood loss.” Coran said casually, not letting Lance see his faltering smile. “It may be quite a while before her body can produce new aryuny.”

“What the hell is aryuny?” Lance scrunched up his face.

“Oh you know.” Coran waved a hand. “Blue blood cells.”

“Blue… Coran, you do realise that humans don’t have blue blood right?”

Lance suddenly wondered if Coran was truely the best chance Pidge had. Maybe they should find a way to get back to Earth so human doctors who knew what human blood was like could help her. 

Pidge stirred in his arms, her brown eyes devoid of their normal sheen. 

“Lance?” She mumbled. “Am I dead?”

The Blue Paladin barked a laugh even as tears rolled down his face.

“Ew!” Pidge growled, instantly becoming more alert. “Don’t cry on me!”

“But I missed you!” He cried, snot and tears leaking from his whole face.

Pidge pushed him away from her, not quite realising that she was sitting on him. She hated to have her personal space invaded and Lance was definitely too close. Her breath suddenly hitched. 

She looked down.

“Lance, Lance I’m bleeding… Oh God I’m bleeding.” 

She started to panic, not quite understanding what was happening. Lance was no help, still blubbering like an idiot.

Coran suddenly appeared by her side, a gentle hand on her shoulder. His calming gaze relaxed her a little and she forced herself to take a deep breath. A deep breath was apparently the wrong thing to do, white fire erupting in her entire body. 

Pidge’s surrounds became a whirl as she was suddenly lifted. The only thing she could focus on was the pain, oh the pain! A distant scream that couldn’t possibly be her own made her even dizzier. 

The Green Paladin looked small and broken in Lance’s arms as he struggled to put her into the healing pod. She kept thrashing which would only make her pain worse. As the pod closed, relief flooded into Lance as his tears renewed. 

———————————————————————————————————————————

Hunk had taken multiple precautions before he came close to Shiro. He was in his Paladin armour, not letting anything remotely dangerous near his past leader like a knife or a gun. But then again, Shiro hadn’t needed a knife or gun to hurt Pidge, he just needed his own arm.

Hunk choked back a gag.

“Hunk,” Shiro looked exhausted and not in the least bit menacing. “Just take your time.”

The Yellow Paladin inched towards the older man, keeping a careful eye on the Galran prosthetic. The Galran prosthetic that Hunk needed to deactivate. The Galran prosthetic that had stabbed Pidge. The Galran prosthetic that still had what looked like dry blood. 

Bile rose in his throat. 

No. Hunk wasn’t going to throw up. He had a job to do. He needed to focus.

Hunk closed the distance, his normally warm eyes steely. He started using the tools he found in Pidge’s room to see if it was possible to shut down the arm.

Neither of them said anything, Hunk focusing on his work while Shiro just stared forward. It was a tense atmosphere, nothing like their normal almost brotherly interactions. Any trust Hunk had had in Shiro had been destroyed and Shiro didn’t even blame him.

The events that had led up to this plagued his mind constantly. Pidge was screaming, begging. She was terrified, betrayed, dying. And it was all his fault. 

“Shiro!” Hunk exclaimed, stumbling back.

Shiro blinked and looked down, his Galran arm glowing. He shut it off immediately.

Hunk was now in the corner of the room, his instruments scattered on the ground. His Bayard was trained on Shiro.

“I’m sorry.” Shiro said pathetically. “I didn’t mean it…” 

Hunk just shook his head, adrenaline coursing through his body. He suddenly knew exactly how Pidge had felt, his heart racing as he realised just how close he had been to dying at his own friends hands. Hand. Galran hand.

“Hunk, I’m sorry.”

Hunk didn’t say anything, leaving Shiro on his own as he rushed out of the room. 

Shiro cursed, slamming his fist against his leg. First Pidge and now Hunk. He was dangerous, he couldn’t be trusted. He was no better than Zarkon, a monster. He slammed his fist again. And again. And again.

Monster! Murderer! Destroyer! Betrayer!

The door clicked open.

Shiro startled, looking up. Hunk was back and something was in hands. He looked a little jumpy still but he had returned in his own free will.

“What’s that?” Shiro asked, stretching out his apparently sore leg.

“Mittens.”

“Mittens.” Shiro stared. 

He blinked. So did Hunk. Suddenly Hunk realised that Shiro had no idea what the mittens were for.

“Well, I was thinking that if I cover your hand then even if it activates it won’t hurt me. I’m not quite sure whether it will work or not but it’s worth a try.”

Shiro blinked. So did Hunk. Finally, Shiro scrunched up his face.

“Where did you get mittens?”

“Lance bought them at the Space Mall, he figured we might land on Hoth or something and would be cold so he left these in Blue.”

“Blue let you in to get mittens?”

“Uh-huh, originally he didn’t want to but then Green growled at him. It would have been quite cool if Green wasn’t so scary when she’s angry. By the way, I think she’s angry with you.”

“I can’t imagine why.” Shiro replied, still staring at the mittens. He doubted they would protect Hunk in any way but the thought that Hunk would go all that way to help was endearing.

With Shiro’s bloody prosthetic now covered by bright blue wool mittens with what could only be described as a polar bear, Hunk collected his instruments and went back to work.

———————————————————————————————————————————

The Green Lion was growling. 

She could feel her Paladins suffering but could do nothing to ease it. She tried sending calming thoughts to Pidge’s head but she wasn’t sure if the girl was receiving them. 

The Yellow and Blue Lions stood by her side, unable to calm her fury. Even the Red Lion, usually keeping his distance from the others, attempted to communicate with Green and sent images of large forests in a failing attempt at getting her focus off of her suffering Pilot.

The Black Lion kept his distance. When he had first landed in the castle, the Green Lion had actually gone so far as to attack him, trying to get her revenge on the Black Palladin. The Black Lion to his credit hadn’t fought back, allowing Shiro to exit safely before taking his place in the corner of the room.

With her prey gone, the Green Lion pounced on the Black Lion.

Again, he did not fight back, only sending images to her. An offer. A deal. Should the Human Girl die, he would not get in the way of the Green Lions revenge. But until that point, no one could threaten Shiro.

Begrudgingly the Green Lion had accepted. 

Her Paladin was strong. She had to have trust that Pidge would make it through this. She sent more calming thoughts to the Green Paladin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Long note! Sorry! I'm not quite sure how to write the Lions, it's very hard but they are still integral to the universe of Voltron. I figured that since they can communicate with their paladins, surely they could communicate with each other? Also, I needed the healing pods to not just fix everything immediately because then Pidge would heal too quickly and I'm not done making her suffer. So I figured if Quintessence is life force, and Alteans always used Quintessence then it would explain how the healing pods heal people. But as Nebulapaws pointed out in Chapter One, Pidge 'died' when her heart stopped and the only way she was saved was through the healing pod so it makes sense that it would drain the pods energy each time her heart failed. Anyway, please leave a review if you like this or have any advice, I'd love to hear what you guys want to see!


	4. Signals and Siblings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Hi guys! Sorry for taking the entire day to update, I was hanging out with my family for pre-Easter celebrations. I am so happy that so many people reviewed, thank you so much to Nebularpaws, Sugarymemes, Em and Shy Green Fox! Your comments literally made my day, as did all the people who left Kudos!

Allura had originally ignored the distress beacon. 

She busied herself with almost anything else if it got her away from the console. Surely if she pretended to not have noticed the beacon, it would soon disappear. A beacon meant someone needed help. If someone needed help then one of the Paladins would have to leave the castle. If a Paladin left the castle and Pidge died then Allura would never forgive herself. 

And so Allura assisted Hunk in the kitchen. And delivered one of the cookies Hunk made to Coran. She then offered to take over Coran’s supervision of Pidge. When he insisted that she rest herself, Allura found herself in the hanger to find Keith attempting to fix the Red Lion, Lance un-helpfully giving commentary on all the things Keith was doing wrong. 

“Why don’t you fix it then?” Keith finally snapped. “You’re the one who broke my Lion!”

“I did not!” Lance yelled back.

“Yes you did! If you hadn’t crashed into Red because you were distracted, I would have never hit that mountain!”

“Hey!” Lance crossed his arms. “In my defence, that alien chick was really hot, of course I got distracted! And it wasn’t a mountain.”

“It was a mountain! A literal mountain! It was covered in trees!” Keith raged. “God, you are so useless!”

“Well you know what? You’re useless-er!”

The Red Paladin snarled and threw himself onto the Blue Paladin, punching his rival in the face and getting a kick in return.

“Keith!” Allure rushed to intercede. “Lance! Stop this! Paladins, stop this immediately!”

Lance and Keith ignored her, scuffling on the Hangers floor, throwing and receiving equal hits. Allura didn’t have time to be grateful that they weren’t wearing their armours, struggling and failing to separate them.

Keith had suddenly gotten on top of Lance, punching Lance with all his might. Within a moment, Lance flipped over his attacker and prepared to headbutt him.

A roar resounded throughout the entire castle, the walls rumbling.

Lance stumbled away from Keith, suddenly very aware that the Red Lion had fixed itself, massive claws inches away from him. Keith to his credit didn’t continue the fight, sitting up and putting a hand on his sore face.

Allura took a shaky breath, flattening her dress.

“Now Paladins, you mustn’t fight amongst yourselves. Arguing isn’t going to help anyone.”

“He attacked-“ Lance stopped short, the Red Lion looming over him. He looked over to his own Lion which had made no move to defend him. “I trusted you.” He grumbled to the Blue Lion.

“I’m sorry.” Keith crossed his arms. “I’m just a little stressed.”

Lance and Allura both blinked.

“Did you just apologise?” Lance asked. “Since when do you apologise?”

Keith refused to look at him, his face turning bright red.

“You’re blushing.” Lance remarked, tilting his head.

“No I’m not! That’s bruising.”

“You just apologised and now you’re blushing! Who are you and where is Keith?”

Allura had no idea what Lance meant by that but she decided that the situation had deescalated, both boys having released their pent up frustrations. She prepared to leave but not before Keith said something that surprised her.

“Patience yields focus.” The Red Paladin was mumbling, almost like he didn’t want the others to hear him. “It’s something Shiro used to say to me. But since Shiro isn’t acting like Shiro anymore I guess I’m going to have to step up a little. So, here is me stepping up.”

Keith looked directly at Lance.

“I am sorry. I attacked you because I’m stressed about Pidge. I shouldn’t have done that.”

Lance didn’t say anything. From his blank stare, he didn’t even know how to respond to Keith’s sudden maturity. He opened his mouth. And closed it again.

Allura decided to take her leave. She made her way to the bridge and pulled up the distress beacon she had been ignoring. Keith was right. Without Shiro acting like a leader, everyone else had to step up. Her duty as the Altean Princess was to protect the Universe. If someone needed help, then she was going to help them.

The distress beacon itself was coming from a planet that was only a few lightyears away. There wasn’t any video or audio feed, a lone signal pulsing the universal distress frequency. Allura retrieved all the information she could, unable to find out what had caused someone to put out a distress signal. It would be best she send at least one Lion in case there were Galra attacking defenceless civilians.

She went to contact Hunk but the Yellow Paladin had been called in by Coran to check over the healing pods. Shiro and Pidge were indisposed so all that was left were Keith and Lance. Since Keith had been the one to inspire her to answer the call for help, she decided he would complete the mission, especially now that the Red Lion was fully functioning again.

———————————————————————————————————————————

“The Quintessence was drained?” Hunk asked, examining the healing pod.

“I’ve never seen anything like it.” Coran admitted. “Not even in the days of Altea.”

Hunk just hummed, opening a panel and looking inside.

“Please be careful!” The Altean exclaimed. “If you touch the wrong thing, the pod may deactivate.”

“I’ll be careful.” Hunk promised. “Man, this tech is awesome.”

“Quite.” Coran stood a little straighter. “My great great great Aunt Koran was the one to invent the first healing pod. She was famous for it. She was also famous for being a terrible singer, oh I don’t believe Alfor’s hearing quite recovered since his coranoation.”

Hunk laughed, still marvelling at the technology. He still struggled to look directly at Pidge’s body, the girl looking even smaller than she normally would. But even if he avoided looking at her, he was glad he could do something to help. He had been cooking new meals for her to try but if his experience in engineering healed her faster, he couldn’t be happier.

“Hey Coran?” Hunk found a control panel and started playing with it. “Do you miss Altea?”

“Every day.” Coran said wistfully. “I’m sure you feel the same about Earth.”

“There’s no doubt I miss Earth.” Hunk said. “But knowing that by staying out here my family is safe and I can help others, I think that makes everything all worth it.”

“That is very wise of you. I’m sure when we defeat Zarkon and the Galran Empire, you will go back to Earth as a hero.”

“Yeah, that’ll be great.” Hunk blinked back a tear, his whole body warming at the thought. “Though I would probably miss all you guys. You, Allura, Shay. Everyone.”

“You could make a robot with my voice!” Coran said excitidly. “I would say to also give it my dashing looks but that would be impossible!”

“What would a robot of you do on Earth?” Hunk laughed.

“Follow you saying ‘Coran Coran the Gorgeous Man, of course!”

“Of course, that sounds really nice.”

Coran beamed, glad he could finally hear Hunk laugh again.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Keith hadn't uncrossed his arms the entire time Allura briefed him. When she had finally stopped talking, he said only one word.

“No.”

"Keith, I know that you don’t want-”

"I'm not leaving Pidge.” Keith said decisively. “Whoever needs rescuing can wait for someone else.”

"There isn't any one else, the Universe depends on Voltron. We can not allow someone to die just because one of our own is injured. You said so yourself, we all need to step up in the absence of Shiro’s leadership.”

He scoured. It was true. Just because Pidge was hurt didn't mean they could just say screw you to someone in need.

Keith decided that as soon as he saved the person that needed saving he would say 'screw you' to them. The sooner he was done, the sooner he could see Pidge again.

"Fine." He growled. “But next time get someone else.”

Allura smiled weakly, thanking him sincerely for his help. She watched as the Red Lion tore away from the Castle and turned her attention back to her responsabilities. Should any more distress beacons sound, she would definitely answer a lot more efficiently and would prioritise her duty as Princess over her feelings as Pidge’s friend.

Allura felt the Castle hum, feeling her fathers presence. Her weak smile became stronger and she allowed herself to feel proud of her decision.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Keith was chewing his lip as he approached the orange planet. Even out of the atmosphere he could see the ravenous terrain, he would have to be careful.

The distress signal was still active though he couldn't see any buildings on the planets surface as he came closer.

The Red Lion landed gracefully on the ground in front of a cave entrance. 

Keith activated his visor as his suit assessed wether the air was breathable. 

"Here goes nothing." He sighed, going inside.

The cave was dark but wide. The ground was uneven and there was a few times where he had to climb a few rocks to continue on.

The beacon was getting closer. 

But there was no sign of anyone, allies and enemies alike.

“Allura," Keith said. "There aren't any life signs around here.”

"I'm not getting any either." The Altean replied. "But something must have activated the beacon.”

Keith sighed but continued on. 

"I found the beacon. It's just some old trash, it probably set it self off.”

"Okay, come back to the Castle.”

“Wait." Keith tilted his head. "I think I see something.”

"Keith, I just lost your signal. Can you still hear me? Keith? Keith?”

Keith hadn't noticed his communication with Allura had failed so he continued to go deeper into the cave. The thing that had caught his attention was a slither of light coming from further down the tunnel.

Activating his bayard, he approached the light. 

“Is someone there?” Keith called. “I’m a Paladin of Voltron, I heard your distress signal.”

No response. Keith went even further, careful not to trip on the uneven ground. He reached what seemed to be the end of the cave, a pale light dancing on the ground. He narrowed his eyes and approached the wall. He pressed his hand to it.

The ‘wall’ was just a brown cloth that was indistinguishable from its surrounds. In fact, if it hadn’t been for the light then Keith would never have noticed the cave went on.   
“Is anyone there?” He called again. “I’m here to help.”

He passed through the cloth to find a makeshift room, old communication equipment haphazardly filling most of it. His grip tightened on his sword as he entered.

The old equipment greatly resembled the beacon outside; little more than a pile of garbage that had to have been made centuries ago. Amongst the ancient tech there was a pile of dusty clothes with an old backpack. A bed?  
Even if it was a bed, there was no one here to sleep in it. 

Keith turned around.

“How did you find me?” A figure in a mask demanded, his weapon pointed at Keith’s neck.

Keith cursed himself for not having noticed the figure before. He deactivated his bayard, knowing he was already at a disadvantage, and raised his hands in surrender instead.

“I’m a Paladin of Voltron. We received a-”

“You’re no Paladin.” The figure’s voice was morphed by their mask. “You’re Galra. Now how did you find me?”

“Gal- What the hell are you talking about?”

“Does anyone else know I am here?” The figure demanded. “Are the Galra coming here?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about! The Galra are my enemy!” 

Keith battered away the figures weapon, realising too late that he shouldn’t have done that.

The figure moved quicker than Keith expected, swinging its staff under his legs and knocking him over, going in for the kill with the sharp end. Keith summoned his bayard just in time, knocking away the staff.

The figure struck again and Keith rolled out of the way, stumbling up while barely holding his own against his new enemy. Keith had no choice but to defend against each hit, being pushed back to quickly to be able to strike back. An old machine found its way underneath Keith’s footing and he slammed painfully onto the ground again.

Keith kicked back with all his might, satisfied when the figure grunted and stumbled back. 

The Red Paladin was up immediately, his sword aiming for the figures torso. The figure seemed to regain its breath and the two could finally fight on even ground, neither able to get a hit on the other.

The exchanged blows, dancing around the room, careful not to trample on the tech as to not fall. 

“Stop this!” Keith shouted. “We are not enemies. The Galra is my enemy.”

“You are Galra!” The figure screamed back, feinting right while he actually struck left. 

Keith gasped but didn’t let his defence down. He was almost immediately able to cut into the figures arm. The figure hissed, red blood dripping down its arm. Its grip loosened on its weapon and Keith was able to knock the staff away.

Although he could have ended the battle there and then now that he was the only one with a weapon, Keith wanted to know just who his attacker was.

“I am Keith, the Red Paladin of Voltron. I have beaten you fairly in a fight, so tell me who you are.”

The figure cradled its arm, making no attempt at retrieving his weapon. They did not respond to Keith’s question.

“You have ten ticks.” Keith growled. “If you do not tell me who you are then I will have to treat you like my enemy.”

There was no response.

“Fine then. Just answer this Do you fight against the Galra?”

“Yes.” 

“Then you are not my enemy.”

For the second time, Keith deactivated his bayard. He walked away.

“Wait.” The figure called. “I’ve heard stories about the Paladins of Voltron. If you are who you say you are then we are allies, not enemies.”

Keith turned just as the figure removed the mask, revealing a young but scarred face. A human face. 

“I’m sorry for attacking you.” He said, offering his uninjured hand out to Keith. “My name is Matt Holt, I’m with the Resistance.”

Keith was suddenly very glad that he had shown mercy.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Pidge was floating. She didn’t feel anything, no pain, no emotions, she was just floating. She opened her eyes, her feet connecting to solid ground suddenly. She looked around, not recognising the endless black plains, an entire galaxy above her.

Her breath caught at the sheer beauty, endless stars blinking slowly. She remembered spending hours outside her house, her brother excitedly showing her all the new constellations he could name, her father standing proudly by her side as he corrected any mistake Matt made, her mother rugged up on a chair behind them, satisfied to just watch her family fawn over the vastness of space. 

Those hours with that telescope never seemed to end, not that she ever wanted them to. But that was years ago and so much had changed. Sam and Matt Holt were missing and Colleen was at home all alone, not knowing what had happened to her family now that her youngest daughter had also disappeared. 

But good things had happened too. Pidge was the Green Paladin of Voltron, she was a Defender of the Universe and everyone relied on her. She didn’t have time to miss home.

“Hello?” She called. 

An outline of the Green Lion materialised in front of her, bowing lowly to her.

“Green!” Pidge exclaimed. “I’ve missed you Girl. Do you know where we are?”

The Lion sent flashes to her Paladins head, memories of the first Paladins of Voltron joining together on the Astral Field.

“If this is where the Paladins join together,” She looked at the vast galaxy above her. “Then where is everyone else?”

The Lion sent new flashes. Shiro, head in his hands in a small cell. Keith, walking the hallways of the Castle all alone. Lance, talking to his own Lion gently, even singing to it? Hunk, conversing with Coran as he monitored a healing pod.

Pidge blinked and turned directly to the Green Lion.

“Is that me? Why am I in a healing pod?” She shivered, hating to see a lifeless version of herself being fussed over by her friend. “And Shiro, he’s crying. Green, I need to get back there. I need to help Shiro.”

The Green Lion hesitated for a moment before choosing to send Pidge’s own memories back to her.

“Shiro attacked me…” She mumbled. “But he would never do that. Something’s wrong, I need to help him.”

The Lion growled defensively, her message obvious. The Black Paladin was not to be trusted.

“Shiro is my friend.” Pidge stood proudly. “Take me back to the real world.”

More flashes. Coran, looking worried. Hunk, his body tense as he looked over the schematics of the healing pod. Pidge’s own body looking pale and weak, remnants of blood covering her suit. Shiro, advancing on her and stabbing her. 

Pidge shivered strongly, both in the Astral Field and in the real world.

“I know you just want the best for me.” She said. “But Shiro needs me right now.”

The Green Lion’s projection faded out of existence.

Pidge opened her eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N And Matt Holt is officially in this story! I swear, within the next chapter Keith will fulfil his promise to himself to say 'screw you' to the person he had to rescue. I'm not quite happy with Keith and Lance's argument, I'm still working out how to realistically portray their relationship while still making it obvious they are under a lot of stress. I can't wait to write Pidge finally seeing her brother again but that doesn't mean she is completely healed. I kind of want to try writing whump for some of the other characters but I'm not really sure. Let me know if you want to see anything! Have a Happy Easter!


	5. Tremors and Tribulations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Hi guys! Thanks again for all the support, I'm really enjoying writing this and being able to share it with others. I have struggled with writers block for a long time, only being able to write maybe five hundred words at a time before I give up. Now, I've written nearly 15,000 in three days! I don't quite know where I am going with this story but at least I've really enjoyed working on it. Onwards to the suffering! (Also, I've included minor swearing in this chapter so let me know if you like it or are uncomfortable and would prefer clean language)

Keith couldn’t believe that after all this time of Pidge searching for her family, he just happened to randomly find Matt freaking Holt in a cave.

“You’re Matt Holt.” Keith said, staring.

“Ah, yes?” Matt tilted his head, arm still stretched out for a handshake. “Is that a problem?”

“No, it’s just that, ah, well you see,” Keith didn’t quite know why he couldn’t just say it.

I know your sister, she is a Paladin like me but she was stabbed by our leader and is currently dying. Yep. That pretty much summed it up.

“Screw you.” Keith said.

“I’m sorry what?” Matt lowered his arm. He glanced over at his fallen staff, wondering if he would have to defend himself again.

“Nevermind.” Keith grumbled. “Just come with me.”

“I can’t leave this outpost, the Resistance depends on it for communication between different bases.”

“Then bring the tech with you.”

The Red Paladin started walking away, offering no explanation to the even more confused Matt.

“Wait, Paladin, why do I need to leave?”

“I’m taking you to Pidge.” Keith said offhandidly, realising it had been a while since Allura had talked to him. 

“Pidge?” Matt’s heart swelled. “She’s here? How could she be this far out in space?”

Keith turned around to face Matt, his fists clenched and his face taunt. He looked exhausted, one of his eyes growing a blackish tinge from his earlier fight with Lance. Matt deflated a little, knowing that look.

That was the look that his fellow rebels had if something had gone terribly terribly wrong.

“What happened?” Matt demanded.

“I’ll explain everything on the way.” Keith said. “Bring any gear you want, just hurry up.”

Matt started packing the bare essentials of the communication equipment, hating that his little sister was in trouble. His heart raced, his mind offering all the different ways Pidge could be in trouble. 

Was she lost? 

Hurt? 

Was she even still alive?

Matt forced that particular thought back down. Surely the Red Paladin would have said it outright if Pidge had been killed. She was fine, she had to be. A low rumble sounded as he closed his laptop.

“What was that?” Keith asked, appearing at the door of the makeshift room. 

“Seismic activity.” Matt said offhandedly, reopening his laptop to scan the planets tectonic plates. “The same thing happened a few hours ago, but it was a lot weaker.”

“Was that what set off the distress beacon?”

“Must have been.” Matt shrugged. “Honestly, until you turned up I hadn’t noticed that a beacon had been activated. This planet is known for its seismic activity, it’s normal for tremors to happen.”

As he said that, the ground noticeably shook, dirt sprinkling down from the roof. Matt quickly typed on his lap top, his brow farrowed.

Keith came over, failing to ignore how similar Matt was to Pidge. Matt was a little bigger than his sister, even his face seeming older. But the way he intently worked on his computer, his back hunched over, eyes moving quickly and fingers moving even quicker, he looked exactly like Pidge.

Matt didn’t seem to realise Keith was staring at him, ignoring the outside world in the same way that Pidge did.

Keith started pacing, his arms cross. Pidge’s brother was taking too long to pack up his gear. The ground beneath them started rumbling again and Keith started to fear for the integrity of the cave they were in.

“Hurry up.” He finally ground out.

“Wait,” Matt’s entire focus remained on his computer. “Something’s wrong. This isn’t normal activity…”

“So what? Let’s just go before the whole thing collapses.” Keith turned crisply and approached the door again.

The rumbling became stronger still and Keith had to change his stance as to not fall. Matt finally looked up from his lap top, looking worried. Another tremor hit and a rock from the roof landed on a device, sending sparks everywhere.

“My Lion’s outside, let’s go!” Keith yelled over the noise.

Matt nodded, downloading all his information onto a chip. He drummed his fingers on his leg as he waited for it to finish.

“We don’t have time!” Keith roared.

The Red Paladin rushed over, intending to drag Matt out of the cave, only stopping when the roof collapsed on top of them.

———————————————————————————————————————————

“Her wound seems to be healed, though she is still very pale.”

“She looks exhausted too…”

“You know,” Pidge’s eyes flared. “I’m right here!”

Coran and Hunk exchanged a look. 

“Of course you are right here Number 5!” Coran boomed. “How else would we know you look pale?”

Pidge winced from the noise, shifting uncomfortably in Hunk’s arms. She wanted to stand up and just get away from the two doting men but her first attempt at standing hadn’t ended well, her back side still tender from falling.

“Hey Pidge,” Hunk’s worry was obvious in his voice and tense body. “Are you feeling alright?”

“I’m fine.” She grumbled even as she readjusted again.

Her breathing was shallow and she was obviously struggling to hold up her head. She finally gave up, leaning into Hunk’s warmth.

“Coran,” Hunk said as Pidge drifted off. “I think we should put her back into the healing pod. She’s so cold.”

Pidge grumbled an objection.

“I have to agree with Pidge,” Coran’s boisterous voice became more caring and gentle. “The pods can only do so much for a person and it’s not a good idea to over use them.”

Hunk nodded in understanding, still wanting to work out more about how the Alteans used Quintessence to preserve life and heal injuries.

“What Number 5 needs now is some rest and fluids.”

Pidge grumbled another objection, her body overcome with nausea suddenly. The idea of drinking anything, or God forbid eating anything, made her feel like she was going to-

Pidge vaulted up as she vomited.

Hunk panicked, torn between tending his friend and not being sick himself.

“Ah, yes,” Coran said gravely. “I’m afraid severe nausea is a symptom of overusing the pods.”

The young girl shivered strongly, feeling even weaker than before. Her surroundings danced around her and she felt so incredibly cold. She closed her eyes, figuring she could just rest a little bit. 

“She’s completely asleep.” Coran remarked. “Well that was quick.”

Hunk grimaced, still holding Pidge close to him as he fought back his own nausua.

“Oh Quiznak.” Hunk said weakly, looking even paler than Pidge.

———————————————————————————————————————————

“Stupid Keith.” Lance grumbled, rubbing his sore cheek. “With his stupid lion and his stupid mullet and his stupid right hook.”

He was lounging on the Blue Lions paw, letting the cold metal sooth his tender ribs. As soon as Keith had left, Lance had been feeling guilty that he hadn’t been the one to take charge in Shiro’s absence. He had acted like a immature brat, punching and kicking Keith like a literal child. He even remembered pulling at Keith’s mullet in a desperate attempt to one up the Red Paladin.

Lance was such an idiot. He just didn’t know when to get over himself sometimes. He was such a coward.

The Lion below him rumbled, sending images of the many times Lance had been brave, risking his own life for anyone that needed help.

“Thanks Girl,” Lance rubbed the giant robots arm. “I know you’ll always be there for me.”

The Blue Lion rumbled again, almost like a purr.

Lance smiled weakly, casting an arm over his eyes. He was exhausted. It had been so hard to sleep knowing that Pidge was in pain and Shiro was in the cells below the Castle. He still struggled to make sense of what had actually happened.

Shiro had tried to kill Pidge. With no provocation, no warning, he attacked her.

Lance wanted to ask Shiro himself about what had happened but he had yet plucked up the courage to visit the supposed leader of Voltron.

“Lance,” Allura’s voice made him jump. “I’ve lost contact with Keith. I was going to warn him about some seismic activity on a planet I sent him to but he’s not responding.”

“I’ll go check it out.” Lance said, pushing down his exhaustion. “The idiot probably stuffed something up.”

“I’m sending you the coordinates to your Lion. But be careful Lance, I have no idea what happened.”

The Blue Paladin prepared to leave the Castle, making an empty promise to himself to talk to Shiro when he returned.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Shiro hated being alone. 

His mind tortured him relentlessly, forcing him to stay awake if only to make him suffer. Pidge’s face as he stabbed her. Matt’s face as he cut his leg with a Galran blade. Sam Holt’s face as he was dragged away from his only son. Colleen’s shattered face as she was told she would never see her family again and it was all his fault.

The Holt’s had trusted him.

Shiro had been Matt’s best friend in the Galaxy Garrison, spending so many nights warm and welcoming nights at the Holt house, feeling like he was a part of the family. Matt had been so mischievous, constantly getting the two of them in trouble. Shiro had been the more mature one, always able to get his friend out of too much trouble should a prank go wrong or a test score was too low. 

The Holt family had taken him in as their own.

And in return Shiro had betrayed them.

New memories flashed in his mind and he narrowed his eyes. When had those events happened? When had he met Zarkon face to face, surrounded by human men that looked identical to himself? When had he been submitted to rigorous testing by Witch Haggar herself?

Shiro’s heart raced, wanting to believe that these memories were just caused by his fatigue and weren’t actually events that had happened. But something nagged at him, a feeling that something was very wrong.

He reached out to the Black Lion, desperate to not be alone.

Like the all the hours he had been sitting in this cell all alone, his Lion refused to communicate with him. 

Shiro hated being alone but he was beginning to hate his own mind even more. 

———————————————————————————————————————————

Keith sucked in a deep breath, pain shooting through his entire system. He coughed strongly as he pushed himself up, unable to see anything around him. He panicked, blinking several times in an attempt to see something. 

He rubbed his visor with his arm, realising it was only covered in dirt, and allowed his fast beating heart to settle. Coughing again, he looked around. Even with his visor now clear, it was incredibly dark wherever he was. 

Keith struggled to remember how he had gotten there, wondering if he had knocked his head. He removed his helmet, a tender hand touching his eyebrow. He hissed and decided it was probably a bad idea to touch his head again.

Leaving his helmet off, mostly so he wouldn’t have to knock against his apparent head injury, his stood up.

Keith’s eyes widened and his arms wrapped around his ribs. He must have landed very heavily wherever he was, hoping he hadn’t broken ribs even if the intense pain was anything to go by.

He swallowed roughly, coughing again. 

Okay Keith, calm down. Panicking won’t help anyone. Someone might be hurt, you should look around.

Keith remembered where he was as soon as he saw a dim outline of a body on the ground.

“Matt!” 

Keith rushed over, admitting he did in fact have broken ribs as pain tore through him.

Matt groaned as he stirred. He went to sit up but Keith pushed him back down.

“Don’t move, you have something on your leg.” Keith rasped, struggling to see Matt clearly.

“What happened?” Matt grumbled, not making another attempt to sit up.

“There was an Earthquake. Or Planet quake. Or whatever you call it.” Keith narrowed his eyes, not knowing why he was babbling. “The tunnel collapsed.”

“Wait, my tech, the rebels depend on it…”

Keith looked around. 

“I think it’s all been destroyed.”

Matt sighed deeply, closing his eyes. 

“Hey Matt, stay awake.”

“I am awake.” He grumbled back. “That tech had vital information on the Galra. Forgive me if I’m a little bummed out.”

“Fair enough.” 

Keith struggled to assess Matt’s injury, only being able to see that something was pinning his right leg down. A rock? No, a boulder. And if the smell of iron in the air was any indication, it had cut into Matt’s skin.

“I need to get this off you but it might hurt a little.”

“Oh,” Matt laughed roughly. “I’m sure it’s going to hurt like hell. It’s kind of nice at the moment, I can’t really feel it.”

“That’s probably a bad sign.” Keith said before he could stop himself. His head was pounding and his mouth had a mind of its own.

“Probably.” Matt agreed.

Keith hesitated to touch the boulder, not wanting to cause pain to the currently relaxed Holt.

“Wait a second,” Matt narrowed his eyes. “That’s my left leg. Dammit. That’s my good one!”

“You have a good leg?” Keith asked, not having noticed in their battle.

“Yeah, my friend Shiro kind of attacked me. But it’s fine, he was just-“

“Shiro attacked you too?” Keith growled. 

“You know Shiro?” Matt seemed to perk up a little. “I didn’t know he was still alive.”

“He’s the leader of Voltron.” The Red Paladin explained, the word ‘leader’ leaving a sour taste in his mouth. “But he hurt Pidge.”

Matt’s calmness was quickly replaced by fury. He sat up as if ready to hunt down Shiro himself.

“That bastard I- ah!” 

“Matt!”

“I’m fine!” Matt ground out, his whole body tense as flames traveled up his leg. “I swear, when I find him I’m going to kill him!”

“You’re going to have to wait your turn.” Keith said dryly.

The ground shook, sending dust raining down on them. Keith regretted taking off his helmet as small rocks aggravated the cut on his head. They needed to get out of there before the rest of the tunnel collapsed. 

Keith stood, feeling incredibly dizzy, and retrieved his helmet and activated his radio.

“Allura, come in. I found Pidge’s brother but he’s hurt.”

The radio just buzzed.

“Allura, come in. Allura, I found Pidge’s brother. Repeat, I found Pidge’s brother.”

Still no response.

“So you really do know Pidge.” Matt hissed as he readjusted his body, still trapped under the rubble. “I never thought I would see her again.”

“Trust me,” Keith came back over and knelt down. “She’s been looking everywhere for you.”

Matt took a shaky breath and Keith realised that he was crying. The Red Paladin wasn’t quite sure how to comfort the other boy so instead settled for trying to remove the boulder that was pinning his leg.

Matt’s screams made Keith’s ever growing headache even worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Oh poor poor Holts, they just don't have it easy do they? I wrote this chapter surprisingly quickly but wanted to have a little cliff hanger until the next one instead of making this one even longer. I love the idea of Matt defending his sister, even against his best friend. I also love the idea that Shiro was friends with Matt at the Garison, even if it makes it more obvious that Shiro would have known Pidge was Kaitie when they first met. Until next time, don't forget to leave a comment! And yes, the title of this chapter is based on Trials and Tribulations in Phoenix Wright, I couldn't think of anything else now that I have started a theme with the titles.


	6. Headaches and Heartaches

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Wow, it's been a few months... Whoops... I originally intended to finish this fic within March but for some reason just could not write this chapter. I literally had three different times where I started to write, hated it, and deleted everything. I am so grateful for all the support I have gotten, it means the world to me that someone would willingly spend a few minutes in their busy life to read something I have written. I wanted to add a new chapter to celebrate the release of season 6 but simply could not get anything done. So instead, it's here now!

Hunk was humming while he cooked.

The kitchen had always been the place where he was most comfortable, where he could forget all his worries and anxiety and just focus on a task. The particular task right now was to create an appetising meal for when Lance and Keith returned from the rescue call. All of them had been through so much over the last few days that Hunk felt like they deserved a home cooked meal, similar to what his mother always made whenever he had a bad time at school.

A home cooked meal always lifted everyones spirits, even if this particular ‘home-cooked’ meal was made on a space ship, seemed to be moving on its own, and honestly smelt quite terrible. Oh well, they had all gotten used to how bad the food was in space.

While Hunk looked forward to presenting the meal to his friends, even planning on bringing a plate to Shiro, he was also realistic in thinking that Pidge would not be able to join them. The Green Paladin had been unable to consume anything, not even water, without immediately throwing it back up. After the first few attempts, Pidge had outright refused any meal Hunk brought to her, even the hydration packs they usually used while training.

Hunk had to push aside his concern for her wellbeing, convincing himself that she would start eating again soon. The only way he could help her currently was to earnestly offer Pidge a hydration pack each time he visited her, even if she would insist that she didn’t want it.  
Pidge was exhausted and in pain. She just needed some time to get herself together and then she would begin to recover. But even as exhausted as she was, Pidge had somehow kept her wit about her, coming up with creative insults each time Hunk tried getting her to drink something. The first time she refused the hydration pack, she had cited that she wanted nothing to do with alien-made fake water and that it was not appropriate for human consumption. The second time, she started quoting something about the ‘the stars are not in position!’ which genuinely made Hunk laugh.

As the pre-set alarm went off, Hunk retrieved a new hydration pack and made his way to the bedrooms.

Pushing aside the rising tension in his shoulders, he tried to convince himself that this time Pidge would accept his help. She wasn’t going to refuse, she wasn’t going to lose more weight, she wasn’t going to die. By the time he reached Pidge’s room, Hunk couldn’t breathe.

Hunk hesitated by her door, forcing himself too breath deeply.

In four.

Hold four.

Out four.

In four.

Hold four.

Out four.

He could do this. He had to be strong, there was no time for a panic attack, not when Pidge needed him.

In four.

Hold four.

Out four.

He was fine, Pidge was fine, everyone was fine. Just relax. Everyone was fine.

In four.

Hold four.

Out four.

Hunk was relieved to find the tension in his body lifting. He had spent years trying to find different techniques to lower his anxiety levels but they didn’t always work so when they did he made sure to be grateful. Feeling calmer, though now a little tired, he knocked on the door. After waiting for a few seconds, he let himself in.

“Hey Pidge!” Hunk grinned, stepping over the mess on her floor to reach her.

For a brief moment, it looked like Pidge was happy to see him. But then her gaze fell on the hydration pack in his hand.

“I’m allergic to anything with the letter ‘A’.” Pidge said dryly. “You know, Apples, Tarts, Hydration Packs.”

“Pidge,” Hunk kept his voice even. “Almost everything has an ‘A’ in it.”

“Not peanut butter cookies.”

“Yes it does. Peanut butter.”

“Oh.”

Pidge blinked slowly, a hand sneaking out from her cocoon of blankets to press against her head.

“You feeling okay?” Hunk asked, setting down the hydration pack and feeling her forehead. “You’re burning up! Pidge, why didn’t you say anything?”

“Because you would react like that!” She snapped, knocking his hand away. “Just leave me alone!”

“No. Something is wrong. I’m going to call Coran.”

“Don’t do that!” Pidge vaulted up and immediately collapsed back down. “Shit… I don’t feel so good…”

Hunk could feel the anxiety fill his entire being once again except this time he couldn’t stop it. Pidge was admitting that something was wrong. She never admits that something is wrong. Which means whatever is wrong must be really really wrong. Oh God something was wrong with Pidge, she was going to die, they would have to hold a funeral, they would have to find a new Green Paladin, he would have to find a new best friend, everything was a disaster!

“Hunk…” Pidge’s voice barely broke through his panic. “Relax, I just-“

They would have to go back to Earth and explain that Pidge had been a Paladin of a giant robot in SPACE only to die at the hands of her leader, Hunk would probably have to go back to the Galaxy Garrison and fill out a lot of paperwork because Pidge had been a student ad now she was DEAD. What if the new Green Paladin didn’t like Star Wars? Or worse? What if the new Paladin hadn’t seen Star Wars?

“Hunk I-“

No, it would definitely be worse if they had seen Star Wars and didn’t like it instead of having never seen the cinematic masterpiece because then at least Hunk would get to show them the movies and they could enjoy them but they wouldn’t enjoy Star Wars as much as Pidge becyse Pidge would be dead and-

“Hunk! Stop it!”

Hunk blinked, staring at the very angry and very not-dead Pidge. She was gingerly holding her side but was still standing in front of him without having to lean on anything.

“Just relax.” She huffed. “I just sat up too quickly.”

Hunk raised a hand to his apparently stinging face.

“You slapped me.” He said.

“Yeah, well, you weren’t listening. You were freaking out.”

“So you slapped me…” Hunk blinked. And again. “I guess it worked…”

Pidge just rolled her eyes, leaning her weight from leg to leg. She was shivering strongly, her knees very close to giving out. Shivers rattled her tiny body, cheeks flushed red while the rest of her body was as white as a sheet.

“You should sit down.” Hunk said, reaching out his arm for support. “Get some rest.”

Pidge shook her head, stubborn as always, and remained standing. The hand gripping her side clenched tighter and she began grinding her teeth. She barely breathed in fear that it would suddenly increase the pain.

“I’ve had enough rest.” She said roughly. “I need to talk to Shiro.”

“Shiro? But he’s the one who-“

“I know!” She snapped. “But I still need to talk to him.”

Pidge regarded the way that Hunk ducked his head, looking not unlike a kicked puppy.

“I’m sorry.” Pidge sighed. “I shouldn’t yell at you. It just hurts, you know?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Hunk weakly smiled. “But you should rest until your fever breaks. Shiro will still be there for when you feel better.”

Pidge looked ready to rebuke but it was obvious that just standing there and talking was taking away all her energy. Without another word, she shuffled back to her bed and collapsed into it, apparently able to breathe again.

“Here,” Hunk put the hydration pack onto her bedside table. “In case you feel like it later.”

“Thanks…” Pidge mumbled, eyes fluttering closed. “For everything…”

Hunk felt his own exhaustion start to get to him and stifled a yawn. He grabbed a discarded blanket off the ground, laying on her gently. His heart warmed when she snuggled against it.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Matt was gritting his teeth with every step, leaning heavily on the Red Paladin of Voltron.

Keith himself was trying not to pass out, his surroundings fading in and out, the darkness of the cave making his confusion worse. He distantly felt something wet in his hair and knew that it was a bad thing though he wasn’t quite sure why, he only knew that they had to get out of there.

The ground rumbled suddenly and Matt lost his footing, landing painfully to the ground. He gripped his injured leg as he cried out, failing to ignore the amount of blood that was stemming from his wound.

“You’re loud…” Keith mumbled, blinking slowly.

“Yeah, well, I think you’re concussed.” Matt gritted his teeth, feeling dizzy.

Keith just hummed, looking around them. There was only the smallest amount of light spilling into the cave, he could barely see ten feet in front of him. Blinking only made it worse but for some reason he still blinked twice in every second. Keith really wanted to sleep.

“No sleeping!” Matt snapped. “We need to get out of here.”

Keith turned to him and blinked again and again. How did Matt know his thoughts?

“Concussion.” Matt ground out, trying to stand. “You keep talking but you don’t realise you’re talking because you’re confused.”

Keith hummed again and supported Matt as he finally got off the ground. As confused as he was, he knew deep down that Matt needed him right now. They began walking again, slower this time now that their injuries started to worsen.

“Pidge,” Matt whispered. “I’m coming for you.”

“Shiro hurt Pidge.” Keith helpfully provided. “She’s probably dead.”

“Just stop talking.”

———————————————————————————————————————————

“Allura, I’ve found the Red Lion. No sign of Keith.” Lance reported.

He settled down his own lion, putting on his helmet as he prepared to search.

“Be careful Lance. There must be something blocking communications, you might be in danger.”

Both Lance and Allura had not even considered that there were no life signs to detect, they both knew that Keith was somewhere near by, perfectly alive, with whoever had sent the original distress signal.

The moment Lance put his foot down on the Planets surface, the whole ground shook. He panicked, going back onto his Lion’s mouth, watching as huge bowlders crashed down on the tunnels below.

“Lance? Are you alright? I just detected seismic activity.”

“I think I just heard something.”

The Blue Paladin waited until the shaking had stopped before he stepped onto the Planet again. Forcing himself to remember the direction of the sound he had heard, he used his jet pack to climb over massive rocks. The sound was there again, closer this time.

Were they screams?

Lance rushed towards the sound, finding a crack between two bowlders.

“Is someone there?” He called, struggling to see through the darkness.

“Lance? Is that you?” A voice echoed from within the cavern.

“Keith? Keith! Allura, I found Keith!”

Lance activated his bayard, preparing to shoot his way through.

“Lance don’t!” Allura shouted. “The rocks are too unstable, you have to find another way.”

He huffed but put away his weapon all the same. Surely there would be another opening to where Keith was without risking a cave collapse. He started to scan the surrounding area, talking while he waited for the results.

“Are you hurt?”

“He has a minor head injury.” Someone called up. “And my leg is in pretty bad shape.”

“Who are you?”

“Matt Holt.”

Lance scrunched up his face, incredibly confused. Matt Holt. Pidge’s brother Matt Holt. After all this time of Pidge looking for him, they just randomly found him.

The scanners pick up a big enough hole to enter and Lance jets over there. Climbing down into the cave system, Lance braced himself as the ground started shaking again. Dirt rained down on him but thankfully no big rocks collapsed.

Lance made his way through the tunnel, knowing it would be difficult to get Matt out if he could barely walk. There were so many places that Lance had to climb over rocks or crawl between cracks.

“Keith, Matt, can you still hear me?” Lance called out. “I’m almost there.”

“Please hurry,” Matt called back. “Keith is getting really confused.”

Lance forced himself to move faster.

Climbing over one final obstacle, he finally found them.

A boy that Lance assumed to be Matt freaking Holt was leaning his back against a wall of rock, gripping his left leg as shivers rattled his body. He looked up at Lance, offering a pained smile.

Keith was pacing, his eyes unfocused, his bayard loosely in his hand.

“Hey Keith, snap out of it.” Lance said. “We need to get out of here.”

Keith blinked, raising a hand to his head and blinked again. He turned around and started pacing the other way.

“Keith, come on.” Lance stepped in the way again.

“It’s no use.” Matt interrupted. “He’s not listening anymore.”

The ground shook violently enough to stop Keith’s pacing for a moment, focusing instead of regaining his balance.

Lance rushed over to Matt’s side, assessing his leg quickly.

“Hi.” Matt said.

“Hi.” Lance replied. “This looks pretty bad. Can you walk?”

“Barely. But the cave is going to collapse at any moment.”

The shaking still hadn’t subsided and more dirt sprinkled down on them, making Matt cough. A small stone fell from the roof and dropped onto his leg. Matt cried out, recoiling against the wall, eyes shut tightly.

Lance reached out and gripped his hand, relieved when Matt gripped back tightly. The wave of pain slowly ebbed away and Matt was left panting.

Keith had begun pacing again, his sword clattering to the ground.

The seismic activity was growing worse and more frequent, a massive boulder collapsing over Lance’s entry point.

“Shit.” Lance growled. “That was our only way out.”

“Great.” Matt said dryly, losing strength.

Keith stopped pacing, landing on the ground suddenly. He was mumbling something, his hand holding his head.

Lance looked at both of them, realising that their injuries were starting to really get to them. He was their only hope of escaping, their only hope of surviving this.

There must be another way.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Allura wasn’t quite sure when the communications stopped. As soon as she realised, she started running diagnostics to find out what was the cause, finally deciding that something on the planet must be interfering with her technology.

There wasn’t anything else she could do to support Lance and it made her feel useless.

“Hey Allura?”

The Princess turned around to find Hunk. She pushed away her concerns and offered a polite smile.

“I just thought you should know that Pidge is running a fever.”

Allura’s smile fell. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

“I shall watch over her.” Allura said. “You go get some rest.”

Hunk looked very unsure but nodded all the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really really really don't like how Hunk's anxiety played out, normally I can describe panic attacks realistically because of experience (yay me) but with his characterisation I really struggled to do that. I've never had a concussion either and know that Keith's behaviour isn't really consistent with the symptoms but by this point I give up. It's fun making both Pidge and Matt angry, I just figured that since they are both in pain they probably have little patience for other people right now. Again, I'm sorry it's taken so long to post this but at least I got there.

**Author's Note:**

> A/N I have also written some of the characters reactions to Pidge's situation so may also upload those and may even make this into a long fic. I really had fun writing this though I know some of it is junky and some characters may be OOC but that's because I normally write original fiction. I was going to add in a reference to Pidge and Hunk's argument in regards to programming but I couldn't remember what Pidge did a 'double' of while Hunk did a 'single' so I couldn't put it in. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this, please leave a comment!


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